1983 : Mah. XXII ]

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983

GOVERNMENT  OF  MAHARASHTRA

LAW  AND  JUDICIARY  DEPARTMENT

MAHARASHTRA ACT No. XXII OF 1983

THE  MAHARASHTRA  FOREST
DEVELOPMENT  (TAX  ON  SALE  OF
FOREST-PRODUCE  BY  GOVERNMENT  OR
FOREST  DEVELOPMENT  CORPORATION)
ACT,  1983.

(As  modified  upto  the  29th  October  2012)

*

PRINTED IN INDIA BY THE MANAGER, GOVERNMENT CENTRAL PRESS, MUMBAI AND PUBLISHED BY
THE DIRECTOR, GOVERNMENT PRINTING, STATIONERY AND PUBLICATIONS,
MAHARASHTRA STATE, MUMBAI 400  004.

2012

[Price  : Rs.  9.00]

1983 : Mah. XXII ]

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983

(i)

THE MAHARASHTRA FOREST DEVELOPMENT (TAX ON SALE OF
FOREST-PRODUCE BY  GOVERNMENT OR  FOREST
DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION) ACT, 1983

CONTENTS

PREAMBLE.

SECTIONS.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

Short title, extent and commencement.

Definitions.

Levy and collection of tax.

Recovery of tax through Recovery Officer.

Appeal against amount of tax.

Utilisation of proceeds of tax.

Exemptions from payment of tax.

Recovery of arrears of tax as arrears of land revenue.

Protection of action taken in good faith.

Power to make rules.

Sales  by  co-operative  societies  from  7th  December  1982  to  16th
January 1983.

Power to remove difficulties.

Repeal of Mah. Ord. III of 1983 and saving.

H  775—1

1983 : Mah. XXII ]

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983
MAHARASHTRA ACT No. XXII OF 1983] l
[THE MAHARASHTRA FOREST DEVELOPMENT (TAX ON SALE OF FOREST-PRODUCE
BY GOVERNMENT OR FOREST DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION) (CONTINUANCE)
ACT, 1983]
[This Act received assent of the Governor on the 15th April, 1983;
assent was first published in the Maharashtra Government Gazette,
Part IV, Extraordinary, on the 15th April, 1983.]
Amended by Mah. 18 of 1992 (1-8-1992) †

”

”

” Mah. 32 of 2001* (22-06-2001) †

An  Act  to  levy  and  collect  forest  development  tax  on  sales  of  forest-
produce  by  or  on  behalf  of  the  State  Government  or  the  Forest
Development Corporation.

Mah.
Ord.
XX of
1982.

WHEREAS both Houses of the State Legislature were not in session
and the Governor of Maharashtra promulgated the Maharashtra Forest
Development (Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or Forest
Development Corporation) Ordinance, 1982, on the 4th December 1982
(hereinafter referred to as “the said Ordinance”);

AND  WHEREAS  thereafter  the  State  Legislature  reassembled  on

the 13th December 1982 ;

AND WHEREAS the Maharashtra Forest Development (Tax on sale
of forest-produce by Government or Forest Development Corporation)
Bill, 1982 (L. A. Bill No. LVIII of 1982), for converting the said Ordiance,
with certain modifications, into an Act of the Legislature was introduced
in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on the 16th December 1982,
but  was  not  passed  in  that  session,  which  was  prorogued  on  the
24th December 1982 ;

AND WHEREAS when the State Legislature had reassembled on the
13th December 1982 and the said Ordiance had not been replaced by an
Act of the State Legislature, the said Ordiance would have ceased to
operate after the 23rd January 1983 ;

AND WHEREAS both Houses of the State Legislature were not in
session  then,  and  the  Governor  of  Maharashtra  was  satisfied  that
circumstances still existed which rendered it necessary for him to take
immediate action to continue the operation of the provisions of the said
Ordinance, with the modifications proposed to be made by L. A. Bill No.
LVIII  of  1982  referred  to  above ;  and,  therefore,  promulgated  the
Maharashtra  Forest  Development  (Tax  on  sale  of  forest-produce  by
Government  or  Forest  Development  Corporation)  (Continuance)
Ordinance, 1983, on the 17th January 1983 ;

AND WHEREAS it is expedient to replace the Maharashtra Forest
Development (Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or Forest
Development Corporation) (Continuance) Ordinance, 1983, by an Act of
the State Legislature ; It is hereby enacted in the Thirty-fourth Year of
the Republic of India as follows :—

Mah.
Ord.
III of
1983.

Mah.
Ord.
III of
1983.

1.

(1) This Act may be called the Maharashtra Forest Development
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or Forest Development
Corporation) 2[* *] Act, 1983.

Short title,
extent  and
commencement.

1 For  Statement  of  Objects  and  Reasons, see  Maharashtra  Government  Gazette, Part  V,  dated

24th  March 1983  at page  176 and  177.

† This  indicates  the  date  of  commencement  of  the  Act.
* Mah.  Ord.  XX  of  2001  was  repealed  by  Mah.  32  of  2001,  s.  4.
2 The  brackets  and  word  “ (Continuance) ”  were  deleted  and  were  deemed  always  to  have  been

deleted  by  Mah.  32  of  2001,  s.2.
(G.C.P.)  H  775—2  (3,342—9-2012)

2

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983

[1983  :  Mah.  XXII

Definitions.

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 7th December 1982.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

2.
(a) “ Appellate Authority ”, where the Recovery Officer is the Forest
Officer or  the Officer  of the  Forest Development  Corporation, means
the  officer  of  the  Forest  Department  or  of  the  Forest  Development
Corporation, as the case may be, immediately superior to the Recovery
Officer, and where the Recovery Officer is the officer of a co-operative
society, means the Divisional Forest Officer, or the Sub-Divisional Forest
Officer  in-charge  of  an  independent  Forest  Sub-Division,  as  the  case
may be, within whose territorial jurisdiction the sale takes place, If any
question arises as to who is the Appellate Authority, in respect of any
sale, the same shall be referred to and decided by the Chief Conservator
of Forests and his decision shall be final ;

(b) “co-operative society ” means a co-operative society registered or
deemed to be registered under the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies
Act, 1960 ;

(c) “  Forest  Development  Corporation ”  means  the  Forest
Development  Corporation  of  Maharashtra  Limited,  being  a  private
company within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1956, and having its
registered office in Nagpur in the State of Maharashtra ;

Mah.
XXIV
of
1961.

I of
1956.

(d) “ forest-produce ” means forest-produce as defined in the Indian

Forest Act, 1927, in its application to the State of Maharashtra ;

XVI of
1927.

(e) “ Recovery Officer ”, in relation to any sale of forest-produce, means
the Forest Officer, or the officer of the Forest Development Corporation,
or the officer of co-operative society, as the case may be, by whom the
sale  is effected,  and if  any  question arises  as  to who  is the  Recovery
Officer in respect of the sale, the same shall be referred to and decided
by the Chief Conservator of Forests and his decision shall be final;

(f) “ sale ” or “ sale of forest-produce ” means any sale of forest-produce
by  or  on  behalf  of  the  State  Government  or  the  Forest  Development
Corporation,  for  cash  or  deferred  payment  or  other  valuable
consideration, whether described as sale price, purchase price or royalty,
and includes any such sale of forest-produce by a co-operative society on
behalf of the State Government or the Forest Development Corporation;
(g) “ sale price ” means the amount of valuable consideration, whether
described as sale price, purchase price or royalty, paid or payable by any
purchaser for sale of any forest-produce to him ; and the words “ sell ”
and  “  purchase ”,  with  all  their  grammatical  variations  and  cognate
expressions, shall be construed accordingly ;

(h) “ tax ”  means the forest development tax on the sale of any forest-
produce  by  or  on  behalf  of  the  State  Government  or  the  Forest
Development Corporation levied and collected under this Act ;

1983 : Mah. XXII ]

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983

3

XVI of
1927.
Mah.
XXIV
of
1961.

(i) Words and expressions used in this Act, but not defined herein,
shall  have  the  meanings assigned  to  them  in  the  Indian  Forest  Act,
1927, in its application to the State of Maharashtra, or in the Maharashtra
Co-operative Societies Act, 1960, as the case may require.

Bom.
LI  of
1959.

3.

(1) Subject  to  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  on  and  after  the  7th
December  l982  there  shall  be  levied  and  collected  by  the  State
Government the tax on every sale of forest-produce from the purchaser,
1
[twelve per cent.] of the sale price of such produce sold to him.
at the rate of
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where any
sale is effected before the 7th December 1982, and under the terms and
conditions of such sale, the whole or any part of the sale price is payable
on or after the said date, no tax under this Act shall be levied and collected
on the whole or part of the sale price so payable.

(3) It is hereby declared that the tax levied and payable under this
Act shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of any tax levied and payable
in respect of the sale or purchase of the same forest-produce under the
*Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959, or any other law for the time being in
force.

4. The  amount  of  tax  leviable  under  section  3  on  the  sale  of  any
forest-produce shall be collected by the Recovery Officer effecting the
sale from the purchaser along with the sale price :

Provided  that,  where  the  sale  price  is  payable  in  two  or  more
instalments, the amount of tax shall also be recovered in instalments,
in proportion to, and along with, the instalments of the sale price.

5.

(1) Any person aggrieved by an order made by the Recovery Officer
determining the amount of tax due from him or aggrieved by any other
order made by the Recovery Officer, may within thirty days from the
date of receipt of intimation of any such order, appeal to the Appellate
Authority. The Appellate Authority, on receipt of any such appeal, shall
give a reasonable opportunity of being heard to the appellant and decide
the matter.

(2) Any order made by the Recovery Officer, subject to an appeal to
the Appellate Authority, and the decision of the Appellate Authority on
any such appeal, shall be final.

6. The proceeds of the tax levied and collected under this Act shall
first be credited to the Consolidated Fund of the State, and thereafter,
after deducting from the proceeds such sum as the State Government
may determine as expenses of collection, the remaining amount shall,
under appropriation duly made by law in this behalf, be placed at the
disposal of the Forest Department each year as additional budgetary
resources to be expended only for forest plantations or other ancillary
purposes connected with forest development programmes and for the
welfare of the people dwelling in the forests and the weaker sections of
the people dependent on forest-produce for their livelihood.

7. Subject to such conditions (if any) as it may impose, the State
Government may, if it is necessary so to do in the public interest, by
notification in the Official Gazette, exempt any specified class of sales
from payment of the whole or any part of the tax payable under this Act,
and such exemption shall take effect from the date of publication of the
notification in the Official Gazette, or such other date as may be specified
therein.

1 These  words  were  substituted  for  the  words  “ ten  per  cent. ”  by  Mah.  32  of  2001.  s.  3.
* Now see the Maharashtra Value Added Tax Act, 1999 (Mah. IX of 2005).

Levy  and
collection of
tax.

Recovery of
tax through
Recovery
Officer.

Appeal  against
amount  of  tax.

Utilisation  of
proceeds of
tax.

Exemptions
from
payment  of
tax.

4

Recovery of
arrears  of  tax
as  arrears
of  land
revenue.
Protection
of action
taken  in
good  faith.

Power  to
make  rules.

Sales  by  co-
operative
societies from
7th
December
1982  to  16th
January
1983.

Power  to
remove
difficulties.

The Maharashtra Forest Developement
(Tax on sale of forest-produce by Government or
Forest Developement Corporation) Act, 1983

[1983  :  Mah.  XXII

8.    All arrears of tax due under this Act shall be recoverable by the

Collector as arrears of land revenue.

9. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against
the  State  Government  or  any  officer  of  the  State  Government  or
the  Forest  Development  Corporation  or  any  co-operative  society  for
anything  which  is  in  good  faith  done  or  intended  to  be  done  under
this Act.
10.

(1) Subject to the condition of previous publication, the State
Govemment may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to
carry out the purposes of this Act.

(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be
after it is made, before each House of the State Legislature while it is in
session, for a total period of thirty days, which may be comprised in one
session or  in two  successive sessions,  and if,  before the  expiry of  the
session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, both
Houses agree in making any modification in the rule, or both Houses
agree that the rule should not be made, and notify such decision in the
Official  Gazette, the  rule  shall  from  the  date  of  publication  of  such
notification have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as
the case may be, so, however, that any such modification or annulment
shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done or
omitted to be done under that rule.

11.

(1) For the removal of doubt, it is hereby declared that sales of
any forest-produce  by any co-operative society  on behalf of  the State
Government or the Forest Development Corporation during the period
from the 7th December 1982 to the 16th January 1983 (both inclusive)
are also liable to tax under this Act, and any amounts of tax recovered
for such sales shall be deemed to have been validly levied and collected.
If any amount of tax for any such sale remains to be recovered on the
7th January 1983 (hereinafter in this section referred to as “the said
date” ), the purchaser shall pay to the officer who effected the sale such
amount within a period of thirty days from the said date.

(2) Any  person,  who  is  aggrieved  by  any  recovery  of  tax  for  sales
referred to in sub-section (1), may, within thirty days from the said date
or from the date of recovery whichever is later, appeal to the Appellate
Authority, and the provisions of section 5 shall, so far as may be, apply
to any such appeal.

12.

If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this
Act, the State Government may, as occassion arises, by order, do anything,
which appears to it to be necessary or expedient to remove the difficulty :
Provided that, no such order shall be made after the expiry of the

period of two years from the date of commencement of this Act.

Repeal  of
Mah.  Ord.
III  of  1983
and  saving.

13.

(1) The Maharashtra Forest Development (Tax on sale of forest-
produce  by  Government  or  Forest  Development  Corporation)
(Continuance) Ordinance, 1983, is hereby repealed.

Mah.
Ord.
III of
1983.

(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken
(including any notification or order issued) under the said Ordinance
shall be deemed to have been done, taken or issued, as the case may be,
under the corresponding provisions of this Act.

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(iv)

Maharashtra  Debt Relief  Act,  1975

[1976  :  Mah.  III

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